Kate Hinds

(Kate Hinds, WNYC) Earlier this week we wrote about Brooklyn Bridge contractor Skanska and how, at one point in the bidding process, their bid did not meet the city’s 14% disadvantaged business enterprise goal. The city expressed concern—but wound up awarding them the contract anyway.

Yesterday we got to ask NYC Department of Transportation Commissioner Janette Sadik-Khan about the number of minority and women-owned businesses being employed on the job as subcontractors. You can listen to it here and read the transcript below.

Reporter: How is DBE compliance going to be made public?

JSK: I believe that it will be included on the tracking information that’s out there.

Reporter: It’s not now. (Crosstalk)

Earlier this week we wrote about Brooklyn Bridge contractor Skanska and how, at one point in the bidding process, their bid did not meet the city’s 14% disadvantaged business enterprise goal. The city expressed concern—but wound up awarding them the contract anyway.

 

VP Biden visits Brooklyn Bridge rehab, touts job creation--but good luck putting a number to it.  (WNYC)

Ridership on CalTrain, the San Francisco-area's commuter rail, is at an all-time high.  So it must be a good time for a budget cut, right?   (The Takeaway)

Get ready for your closeup: Bradley International Airport prepares to deploy new  "passive millimeter wave technology" to screen passengers.  (Hartford Courant)

Georgia governor signs legislation that could create massive transportation change in that state.  But a lot can happen between now and 2012, when the law goes into effect. (Atlanta Journal-Constitution)

Ohio police don't need to rely solely on radar guns:  State's Supreme Court rules that "visual estimate" of speed is enough to make a speeding ticket stick.  (Cleveland Plain Dealer)

Just don't talk while you're pedaling: Nokia unveils bicycle-powered cell phone charger. (CNET)

Cosmonauts locked inside ship for 520-day Mars mission--in a warehouse in a Moscow suburb.  (BBC)

Vice President Joe Biden is gifted the Brooklyn Bridge (Kate Hinds/WNYC)

(Kate Hinds, WNYC) Wednesday's official groundbreaking of the Brooklyn Bridge rehab brought out some big political names--Vice President Joe Biden, Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Congressman Jerrold Nadler. What it did not bring was clarity on the job creation issue.

Because New York received federal stimulus dollars to complete the bridge work ($30 million of the $508 total comes from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, with a $192 million in additional federal funding and $286 in the city’s own capital funds going to complete the work), the city must follow certain reporting guidelines, like the amount of money spent, the progress of the work and the expected number of jobs that the project will generate, although pinning down actual job creation numbers is notoriously difficult. (Last December, the Obama administration changed the job reporting requirement to evaluate “full-time equivalent” positions paid for out of stimulus funding--regardless of whether the job was newly created or existing.)

New York City’s stimulus website estimates that the Brooklyn Bridge rehab will create and/or retain 834 full-time equivalent positions--although New York City Department of Transportation Commissioner Janette Sadik-Khan said after the press conference that calculating the number was difficult. “There are all different ways to cut a job,” she said. “There’s the direct job number, then there’s the indirect job number--I think that’s 2,594 or something, it’s not an exact science.” Earlier in press conference, the vice president said that the federal stimulus dollars would create 150 jobs.

But as of March 31--the most recent stimulus reporting deadline--New York City’s own data said the bridge work had created 0.13 positions. Recovery.gov’s data registered zero jobs created, even though Skanska Koch, the contractor, officially began work in January. According to the commissioner, the .13 figure is outdated and a more accurate number will be reflected in the next reporting period, which ends June 30. “I think we have 44 people on-site right now, and we expect that number to grow as the project ramps up,” she said. WNYC was unable to find any public job postings for the Brooklyn Bridge work on either the New York State Department of Labor website or recovery.gov.

The commissioner added that the work on the bridge is “on schedule and on budget” despite its complexity--and the fact that it’s reported as being six months late on the city’s stimulus tracker. “This is not a typical infrastructure job in that this is the Brooklyn Bridge. This is a half-billion dollar project...this is not a project where you're stapling two pieces of paper together. This is a project where you are engaging a wide swath of the construction and engineering community,” she said.

But back to the Brooklyn Bridge and job creation. “Yes, these are jobs, these are real jobs,” Vice President Biden said. “But I want to point out--when people say well, this is because the economy’s in such trouble. What we’re doing here, what the mayor and the city and state are doing here on the Brooklyn Bridge--and what we’re doing on those other bridges across the country--they are worthwhile in and of themselves. (Even if) this economy were clipping along at an 8 percent growth rate and we had zero percent unemployment, this is a necessary, worthwhile investment.”

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Learn more about WNYC’s Brooklyn Bridge coverage--and to sign up to help the station watch the work here.

Wednesday's official groundbreaking of the Brooklyn Bridge rehab brought out some big political names--Vice President Joe Biden, Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Congressman Jerrold Nadler.  What it did not bring was clarity on the job creation issue.

Vice President Biden comes to New York Wednesday to tout the success of the stimulus program. With Biden set to visit the Brooklyn Bridge, a project using $30 million in stimulus fund...

From MasterCard to MetroCard:  NYC's MTA begins piloting new payment system today. (WNYC)

Meanwhile, an average of 236 MetroCard machines are being vandalized daily.  (AM New York)

What did BP know --and when did they know it?  Documents show that the company reported problems with the undersea well a month before the explosion.  (The Takeaway)

Wichita lays out comprehensive transportation plan that includes coordinated traffic signals, more buses, and bicycle-friendly streets.  Price tag to become reality: $6.7 billion.  (Wichita Eagle)

Jack it up 65 feet, or replace it?  The Port Authority grapples with how to raise the Bayonne Bridge to accommodate big container ships.  Meanwhile, their revenues are on the decline.  (Star Ledger)

Everyone agrees that texting while driving is bad--so why can't Pennsylvania's legislature agree on a law to ban it?  The sticking point: whether the offense is primary or secondary.    (Scranton Times Tribune)

Why are derailments on the rise in Tennessee?  The Federal Railroad Administration is trying to figure out why.  (Chattanooga Times Free Press)

From 1776 to 1783, thousands of Americans were held by the British on warships anchored in Wallabout Bay, near what is now the Brooklyn Navy Yard. More Americans died here than died in battle over the course of the entire war. WNYC’s Kate Hinds recently visited Fort Greene Park to ...

Highway repair problems in Forsyth County create "perfect storm" of delays; residents form PAC called "Get 141 Done."  (Atlanta Journal-Constitution)

Has the Michigan state house been taken over by Canadians?  Opponents of a new Detroit-Canada bridge say YES.  Legislation approving bridge's construction clears house, moves on to state senate in face of fierce opposition from...owners of existing bridge.   Proponents say it will create jobs and boom in commerce. (Detroit Free Press)

South Jersey drivers, watch out for TACT: state police will be "Targeting Aggressive Cars and Trucks" in an effort to curb aggressive driving. (Courier-Post)

What's under LaHood:  transportation secretary thinks the rest of the country can learn something from New York. (WNYC/Brian Lehrer Show)

President Obama will announce a moratorium on new deepwater drilling permits while country waits to see if "top kill" stops oil leak in Gulf of Mexico. (NPR)

Take the train to the plane (well, by 2016): construction to extend DC Metro's 'Silver Line' to Dulles airport kicks into high gear. (WAMU)

Ahoy, mateys!  Fleet Week parade of ships kicks off in the Hudson.  (New York Times)

What happens when three Alabama municipalities agree on a road expansion project, obtain federal money...and then one wants to back out? The $500,000 question: who reimburses the feds? (The Anniston Star)

Welcome to the World Series of excuses: St. Petersburg cracks down on people who abuse handicapped parking placards at Tropicana Field. You're outta there! (St. Petersburg Times)

It turns out that Dallas Area Rapid Transit overestimated revenue by almost $3 billion; now will cut hundreds of jobs and reduce light rail service. (Dallas Morning News)

Gas purists feel the pinch as federal standards push ethanol content higher (Kansas City Star)

Ohioans cross their fingers: 1,000 local jobs depend on a federal loan to set up electric car battery plant (Columbus Dispatch)

And a day after putting the spat-on bus-drivers taking two months off story on the front page, The Times' Jim Dwyer (who had an early career stint as the In the Subways columnist for the late, great New York Newsday) reports that it wasn't really true, nor is it the source of the MTA's budget woes. (The New York Times) .

(Full Disclosure: WNYC also reported the story, but Matthew Schuerman wisely put it in the context of a set a strategic leaks by the MTA about the union. )

Modern streetcars are long-term vision for Broward County travel (Sun Sentinel)--but will it be a hard sell in an area where residents are "car crazed?"

Indiana officials lure Chinese automakers to town to try to boost local auto parts manufacturers--and to continue Indy's bid to become an electric vehicle hub (Indianapolis Star)

In New York, bus drivers take two months' paid leave--after being spat upon (WNYC)

Leave your car at the gate: South Carolina developers plan a bicycle-only subdivision (The Item, Sumter, SC)

Meanwhile, across the border in North Carolina, Charlotte's light rail line is underfunded and likely to be shortened (The Transport Politic)

Pennsylvania doesn't make the grade: state gets a D-minus for roads and transit -- while watching construction costs increase 80% in five years (Altoona Mirror)

It might get worse:  there's a shortage on an essential ingredient for those nice yellow road stripes.  (The Takeaway)

The specifications for the work done on the Brooklyn Bridge, as prepared by the New York City Department of Transportation, contain information about each item to be used in the bridge rehabilitation.  We took a look at one item:  $1,300 tree guards.  Are they worth the cost, do they actually protect the trees--and are these trees we should be protecting in the first place?

Perhaps you've been wondering how to combine Bike Month NYC with the 127th anniversary of the opening of the Brooklyn Bridge.  Wait no longer! 

Judges Regularly Break Sentencing Law on Speeding Tickets (Chicago Tribune) Metro Chicago courts keep tickets off drivers' public records by incorrectly using supervision.

Atlantic City Jitneys Going Green (Press of Atlantic City) Atlantic City is converting their 190-vehicle fleet to shuttle buses that operate on compressed natural gas.  But so far, drivers can only fuel up at one location.

Bridge Construction Ahead on the Walt Whitman (Philadelphia Inquirer) "Functionally obsolete" bridge -- one of the busiest in the city -- to spend four years upgrading, one lane at a time.  Drivers sing the traffic electric.

Ellison Intermodal Rail Yard Fight Goes to State Supreme Court (Roanoke Times) Montgomery County argues against the rail yard and challenges Virginia's use of public funds for private projects.

Florida Cyclists Fight Bill Requiring Them to Stay in Bike Lane (Orlando Sentinel) New safety bill requires use of bike lanes if available; cyclists say lanes are often too close to parked cars and they're at risk from being "doored."

NY Names Director to Oversee High Speed Rail Program (WCAX) Marie Corrado to help spend New York's paltry $151 million.

Congress Not Impressed with Metro's Safety Measures (WAMU)  Metro officials want more federal money; Congress wants to increase oversight.

The Brooklyn Banks (a red brick plaza under the ramps of the bridge on the Manhattan side) whose ramps, angled surfaces and staircases are catnip to skateboarders (and bikers, and practitioners of Parkour) -- is about to be taken offline.  The Department of Transportation just posted a notice (pdf) that this area will be closed beginning May 15th. (More)

 

As the director of the East River Bridges for the New York City Department of Transportation, Hasan Ahmed is overseeing the $508,612,678 rehabilitation of the Brooklyn Bridge.  WNYC’s Soterios Johnson and Karen Frillmann took a walk on the bridge with Mr. Ahmed to get more details about the work taking place on this iconic structure.  (More)

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